MIRAMAR, Fla. – A heartbroken Miramar woman is blaming a mobile grooming service for her dog’s death.
Ines Jorge’s beloved French bulldog, named Fendi, died back in mid-September. Jorge said it happened while Fendi and her other dog were being worked on by the mobile grooming service, Love Dog Grooming.
“She’s been grooming our dog for over a year now, so we felt comfortably safe,” Jorge said. “We didn’t think nothing of it.”
But something went wrong on Sept. 13.
After more than an hour in the van, Jorge said the owner began calling to her, saying she couldn’t finish Fendi’s haircut, and handed back their other dog before going back for Fendi.
“About 45 seconds later, she comes out with my dog wrapped in a blanket, with her head hanging over, panting and she just looked like she was already dead,” Jorge said.
They tried wrapping her in wet towels and putting fans on her, then rushed her to a nearby vet, where they spent hours trying to get her treated.
Eventually, they moved to another vet hospital in Aventura, but it was too late: Fendi had to be put down.
“Fendi was not just a dog. She was my child. I did everything for her. That was my baby,” Jorge said. “I miss her, and nothing will bring her back.”
Afterward, Jorge posted a review about her experience on the company’s webpage.
The owner responded and denied responsibility, saying when the dog started to show signs of distress, she gave it water, that things changed in a matter of seconds and that her heart is broken.
But Jorge says she doesn’t buy it.
“If she would have even said, ‘I am so sorry this happened in my truck, is there anything I can do?’” Jorge said. “But at this point, there is nothing she can do that will comfort me with those words.”
By the time Fendi got to the vet, her temperature was at 108 degrees, which is about the equivalent of a human having a 105-degree fever.
The owner of the grooming company told Local 10 News she didn’t want to do an interview and said that the dog had some kind of health issue. Jorge denies that.
Family members have created a GoFundMe page to help with expenses.